China biggest security threat to India, says CDS Rawat

China has become India's biggest security threat and the tens of thousands of troops and weaponry that New Delhi rushed to secure the de-facto Himalayan border last year will not be able to return to base for a long time, Defence Chief General Bipin Rawat said. Talking to  Bloomberg, CDS Rawat said a trust deficit and mounting suspicion have become obstacles in the resolution process between the countries. He  had said the controversy about the Chinese coming into the Indian territory and building a new village is "not true", and that the villages were well within the Chinese side of the Line of Actual Control (LAC).

He also asserted that China has not transgressed the Indian "perception" of the LAC. A lack of “trust" and growing “suspicion" is coming in the way of resolving the border dispute between the nuclear-armed neighbors. Rawat said. “India is prepared for any misadventure along the border and in the sea," he added. His comments coincided with India’s Foreign Ministry’s criticism of new Chinese construction in areas that both sides claim. The Defence Chief also expressed concerns about how the Taliban's rule would impact India's security, with the increased possibility of terrorists in Jammu and Kashmir getting ammunition support from Afghanistan. India's military establishment is concerned that the terrorist group's return to power could help terror groups operating in the region, even though border defences have been fortified.